inspirations & ideas from the west coast

How to follow your dreams: ask for help

When I was participating in the Mondo Beyondo course recently – a course in “dreaming big” – the conversation in the discussion group section of the site took a turn. It went something like this: “Hey, we all have these dreams that we want to accomplish – how about if we all help each other accomplish them?” How about we do that, indeed.

The people in the course began to realize that if someone wanted to go to Italy and another of us had been there or had contacts there, then maybe they could share that knowledge or information in order to help the first person make that trip and realize their dream. Or if another of us had a business we desperately wanted to start but had no idea how to market it, and someone else was actually a marketer in their work and would be happy to help, then it would make a beautiful symbiotic connection. Dozens of us in the course all started to realize that maybe we should start telling other people our dreams (as in “Putting it Out There”, in the words of Noelle Oxenhandler) and doing so might actually help make our dreams come true. Bring them out in the light of day, own them, and be open to the possibilities that might arise from that unveiling.

Powerful, huh? To me, it was so exciting when the group’s consciousness went in this direction. As someone that has spent her life working in “helping sectors” – education, government, and nonprofit – sharing my knowledge with others has become pretty commonplace. In fact, I can think of many instances in the past where I went “above and beyond” what was asked of me, simply because I thought it was the right thing to do, and enjoyed helping the person in question.

As I think back, however, I realize that helping others has always been easier for me than asking for help. Part of the reason I’m sure is because I’m a bit of a perfectionist/control freak that always wants things done “right”, but part of it has also been wrapped up in the hesitation of burdening others with my requests or problems, or I suppose sometimes simply not knowing where to turn.

Several times recently the notion of helping others and sharing knowledge freely has popped up in my life, and when that happens I try to pay attention. I think the world likes to remind us that we shouldn’t keep what we know secret, but rather share it freely with others. We should help others where we can, but also be brave enough to allow another person the opportunity to help us. It involves some letting go on our part, and trust, of course. But it allows the person we’ve asked for help the opportunity to experience the joy of making a difference in our lives and that can be a real gift.

So think about this: how can you help the people you know achieve their dreams? Who can you ask for help to assist you in reaching your own? I’m starting to realize that it takes a village of people to help us follow our dreams. Perhaps it’s time to get to know our neighbours a little better.

I’m off to keep pursuing my dreams. Would you like to be part of my village? If you know how I can do any of the following, I’d love to hear from you! 🙂